La Caretta is a good Mexican restaurant. Good flavorful food of ok quality and quantity. Ambience is ok. Furniture is a bit beat up but not overly bad. Outlay of the restaurant is a bit odd and is very open and there's an area with tables that seems like it should be a waiting area. Overall ok. read more

La Caretta - Enchilada trio...good flavor - Mexican Near Me - Forest, Virginia

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La Caretta is always a great place to go for lunch or dinner. The staff are all friendly and willing to help each other out. The food is the reason they're always packed when you go in there, but it's worth the wait. read more

The food is always yummy and the service is always prompt! I usually get a half chicken talavera and it is always delicious. Everything always comes out fast and they are on top of refilling things. read more

La Caretta - Chicken talavera - Mexican Near Me - Forest, Virginia

La Caretta has a courtyard for outdoor dining and they are dog friendly! They brought a bowl of water for our puppy. The portion was huge for the price. Service was good; nice pacing too. Very colorful, illustrated menu! As soon as you are seated they bring on the nachos! Another plus is that they have clean restroom. read more

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We just returned from Mexico and the food we ate at La Caretta to be as good, if not better than anything we had in Mexico. We had dishes that contained chicken, beef, and shrimp - everything was very tasty! Our waitresses (Jacime) was prompt and courteous. We were very happy and will come back the next time we are in Lynchburg. read more

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The best food and very generous portions. I think the people who gave 1 star rating are either competitors or don't want everyone else to discover this amazing jewel. I highly recommend this place for excellent food in a relaxed atmosphere. read more

Visiting the area and who doesn't love a good Mexican spot!? I can't complain about the food at all, it was tasty and exactly what you'd expect. The only thing I'm gonna knock them on is a few people at our table had margaritas and they were inconsistent with the mixer/tequila ratio. Besides that it's worth the visit! read more

La Caretta - Chicken/rice/cheese - Mexican Near Me - Forest, Virginia

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Family friendly, affordable, and consistent. Portions are plentiful and the service is great! Free chips and salsa every time. Strong frozen margaritas! Loves this place read more

The place was crowded but only a 15-20 min wait. The portions are huge and the nachos are awesome ! Great food and service.

Great place! Stopped in for Lunch while touring nearby Jefferson's Poplar Forest. Good food! Great prices and service. I had a lunch special with an enchilada and taco and my wife had a Chicken Enchilada. Friendly service, full bar. Recommend this place! read more

Consistently fast tasty food. The staff are attentive, responsive, and very polite.

It is not the same laca. Service was bad. Our server was a genially nice person. Did his job. However, All our drinks are empty. Chips are empty. The salsa is basically spicy water. Each salsa provided to the table was different. We ordered cheese sauce and it only came after reminding our service. Maybe La Caretta is understaffed. Maybe short on shift. Does not justify waiting an hour+ on our food. Finally, I would NOT recommend La Caretta. I would NOT recommend any La Caretta locations. If the workers spent as much time on the food and service as much as they do on their looks and having their hair done with a pound of gel, than maybe we would be making progress on service. If you want authentic Mexican food. Try Mi Patron. read more

Best Mexican food in the area, and the Forest location has much better food than their Lynchburg, VA store. My favorite is the Steak and Shrimp. read more

The food is not authentic Mexican food, chili rellenos should be stuffed with Monterey cheese, not pieces of green Chili's in refried beans with ground crumbled beef, with that nasty cheese they use, his enchiladas were va like a piece of cardboard, with who. Knows what in them, pieces of chicken? Plz go to Mexican cooking school or get the sunset Mexican cookbook to help you!!! We are from near Mexico, this food is not good, I'm from a Mexican family, !! We've tried your place many many times hoping it will get better!! It's gotten worse read more

The Forest La Caretta location is our favorite La Caretta Mexican Restaurant. It may not have the ambience of the Timberlake location, but the food is better at the Forest location. That's the consensus my wife and I came to having eaten at just about all the local La Caretta locations. My wife's favorite is the Quesadilla Texana and mind is any of the shrimp fajitas on the menu. Though we're closer to the Timberlake location, we always drive out to the Forest location for Mexican night out. read more

Terrible service and food quality at this location. Very disappointing. Waited a long time to be served. No good.

Meh. Pretty standard Americanized Mexican food, Tex-mex. You know if they have fajitas it's likely not going to be authentic.

Pollo Loco with Chorizo is excellent, very delicious! Always my go to restaurant for great food, service and environment!

I go to this restaurant every time I visit Lynchburg (about 4xs a year). I have tried several "La Caretta"s in the area and the one in Forest is the best! The food is good as always but at the Forest location, the waitstaff is bar none. You've got to try it out!! read more

After getting food poisoning from this location, I don't eat here anymore. My friends wanted to eat here since everything else had a long wait and it was close and easy. Being my past with this location I decided to just pick up food and eat it instead of food from La Caretta. The waitress told me I couldn't bring outside food in and I said okay and explained that I got food poisoning last time eating here and that I didn't like their food anymore and she laughed at me. She was very rude and also sloppy spilling water on my friend's belongings. read more

My wife, myself, and sister were in town looking at homes with our realtor Stuart as we are relocating. He is a regular here and bought us lunch today and we are glad we picked this for a late lunch. The food was great, very fresh, salsa was wonderful, the cheese sauce was amazing, hot fresh chips, and awesome Sweet Tea. We are slowly finding our regular spots already while in town and this is one of them. The staff was very friendly and tentative, we would highly recommend this place. read more

Stopped in for a quick lunch. Ordered the tacos Al pastor. They came quickly and were much larger and tastier than I expected! (I was expecting more like pulled pork in a tortilla for the price but they had some delicious sauce on them.) Couldn't finish them all. Prices are very reasonable. read more

Much improved salsa lately! Salsa is way better and Fajitas were good. Friendly staff. Seems like they are working hard to improve.

I have been coming to La Caretta since I was in elementary school. I would go with my parents to Friday night dinners at the original Timberlake Rd store. When Orlando opened the Forest store, my parents and I made the switch because we LOVE ORLANDO. I have grown up knowing him for almost 30 years, and now he knows my kids. He is so nice and friendly, and La Caretta stands as my favorite Mexican restaurant I have ever been to. As far as meals of choice, I LOVE a Quesadilla Texana, The La Caretta, and Fried Chimichangas. You also can't go wrong with a combination plate. I'm not exaggerating when I say that I tend to dislike the enchilada and burrito sauces and many other Mexican restaurants, but La Caretta is on point. So in the unlikely event you are one of the few Lynchburg or Forest natives who have yet to try out a La Caretta, immediattely remedy this!!! And get the cheese dip while you're at it. read more

Nice restaurant good food, highly recommend who likes Mexican restaurant. Menu have a wide assortments. Definitely recommend this restaurant. It's located in Robinhood Village Dr 27106 read more

La Caretta - Mexican Near Me - Forest, Virginia

Best Mexican Restaurant we have found in the USA. We are RVer's and travel 5 - 6 months out of the year and we try Mexican Restaurants wherever we are and have yet to find one as good as La Caretta's . Some are as good, but, none better. Orlando has been serving us now for 28 years and is the Manager of the Forest, VA. Store. read more

Always good service. I got the gorditas, I should have only gotten one. They are huge! I got one steak and one chicken and they were tasty. I added cheese sauce over it because, well I guess there really is not a reason I just did it! The steak could have been cooked 5 minutes less but had good flavor, the chicken was moist. I'm not a big Mexican food fan so LaCa feels my need just fine. My wife and now my 2 year old love this place. read more

La Caretta - Steak and Chicken Gorditas with cheese sauce. - Mexican Near Me - Forest, Virginia

I must confess that I live in San Diego so I have access to great Mexican food. This place has the standard Mexican choices that you can get in Virginia. The chips and salsa were readily refilled and the salsa is not too spicy. I ordered a Vegetarian dish that included a mushroom quesadilla and spinach and potato burritos. The quesadilla was greasy and the other two were covered in a tomato sauce. It's not something I would order again but it was filling. They do offer cheese dip you can order with the chips and is great on the main dishes. read more

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Still haven't gone back to this place since they cheated me on my bill. Make sure you double check your bill before paying

A great little gem not too far from Lynchburg with some incredible, and authentic, Mexican cuisine! It's the second location I've been to, and by far the location I prefer. Friendly staff, quick service, and from what I've seen, some very happy patrons. I for one, will make sure to visit this location the next time I am in the area for another great meal! read more

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This is the second or third time I've been here and received terrible service from the same waiter. This time we waited 10 minutes to be even be given a drink and had to ask to order from a server walking by. I love La Caretta but I'm just disappointed with this location in particular. read more

Brought my whole family today and I would highly recommend la carreta. I personally got a taco and 2 enchiladas and they were superb. Was spoken too by multiple employees that made sure everything was going smoothly also. Great job! read more

My family eats here at least once a week if not more. We love the staff they are always friendly and accommodating. The food has always been consistent for this type of Mexican affair. I like this one much more than the Timberlake location( not consistent food or friendly). read more

I loved the food. The service was very bad though. I had take-out, when I was ordering the food, on the phone, the man taking the order was very rude and wasn't listening to anything I said. We were ordering a few things, of those things was a Special La Careta. In the meal you can chose between a cheese or chicken enchilada. He didn't listen to what we said he just went on without letting me answer and the hung up abruptly, not letting us say the rest of our meal. This was two of four inconveniences. The whole experience was no great and I just wanted to explain to others the way I was treated hopefully and maybe these problems can be fixed. read more

I would just like to start this review by saying, I have never had such a delicious taco as I have at this place. I felt like I had died and gone to Cancún. Also, NO LANGUAGE BARRIER. The waitstaff was very knowledgable of the English language and I was easily able to order my food. I would have given five stars except that I couldn't substitute my brown rice for white. read more

My favorite food of all time is Mexican (with Italian being a very close second). Being new to town, one of my first missions was to find, what I hoped would become, "my" go-to Mexican restaurant. So, I did what any smart foodie does and I asked the locals where I could find the best in town! I was directed to two different places immediately: La Carreta on Forest Road, and Mi Patron (which I have yet to try), that's just down the street. After casually mentioning my newly received recommendations to my husband (and with him knowing my undying love for all food Mexican), we decided to try out La Carreta on a random Wednesday night this past week. From the minute we walked through the door, we knew this was going to be a great experience. For a Wednesday night, with no evident specials/events going on, La Carreta was packed full of happy dinners enjoying their food, as well as their good company. The service was excellent, with everyone pitching in to ensure our dining experience was top notch, which it was. As per usual, complimentary house tortilla chips and salsa came out first. The chips had a nice texture and flavor and were still warm. The salsa was fresh, but a bit lacking in flavor, for my taste. I really enjoy a vibrant salsa that is chunky and chocked full of fresh tomatoes, onions, and cilantro, with just a bit of heat that slowly creeps up on your palate. This salsa, although fresh, lacked the depth in flavors that I enjoy. Like we typically do when eating Mexican, we ordered a cup of queso blanco to enjoy. This dip was full of flavor, and of course, cheesy goodness! I like my queso really thick in consistency, and this was a tad runnier than I generally prefer, but the flavors were spot on - so I considered this a win. In reviewing the menu, there was a nice variety of typical Mexican fare, as well as some of their own specialty items. I selected the Grande Quesadilla, loaded with beef tips, peppers, onions, and refried beans, served on a plate with fresh pico de gallo (in a cute little fluted taco shell) and smothered in queso cheese sauce. My husband order the Fajita Burrito, which had similar components inside (beef tips, peppers and onions), and was served with sour cream, guacamole, lettuce and tomatoes, with sides of Mexican rice and refried beans. Both meals were of excellent quality, and exuded freshness and great flavors! One issue I generally find with lower quality Mexican establishments is the use of poor quality beef in their dishes, to help keep prices low. That is not the case with La Carreta, which served a good quality beef product at a very reasonable price. In addition to my meal, I opted for a frozen house margarita, which was strong in flavor and tequila, and not as frozen as I would have preferred. Also, I'm fairly certain that it came from a pre-made mix and I really rather enjoy mine freshly made and extra icy! The ambiance was typical of a Mexican restaurant with brightly colored decor and good lighting. There was a great sense of urgency about the staff, who were all busily assisting guests throughout the dining area. All staff members that we encountered that evening were friendly, greeting us with warm "Hola Amigos!" and sincere smiles. Isn't that what dining out is all about? Feeling like a guest in a friend's home, who happens to be a great chef! In summary, based upon the ambiance, excellent service and taste/quality of the food (with plenty of tasty leftovers for the following day!), I rate this restaurant with 4 stars and give it a high recommendation to anyone in the area looking for great Mexican fare, with fast, friendly and attentive service! read more

Love this place. I would eat is every day if I wasn't already too chubby! Great food, great atmosphere and friendly staff! I am a person who typically does a lot is substitutes to avoid having food on my plate that I don't want to eat and they're always accommodating. Love them! read more

I love this place! Whenever I leave town I always try to find something like it and I am never able to. Anything they serve with cheese dip on top is fabulous. I don't know anyone in this area that doesn't love La Caretta. The staff is so friendly and the prices are great. Highly recommend!! read more

We love this place. Orlando is awesome! We go just about every week and are rarely if ever disappointed. Inexpensive, tasty food.

Bar staff is fun and friendly, food it the best Mexican in Lynchburg and the prices are more then fair.